CEMATEX’s strategic role in ITMA ASIA + CITME, Singapore 2025
When ITMA ASIA + CITME opens its doors at the Singapore Expo from 28 to 31 October 2025, one of the driving forces behind the show will be CEMATEX, the European Committee of Textile Machinery Manufacturers. As co-owner of the exhibition, CEMATEX has been instrumental in shaping not just the logistics of the event but its wider purpose: expanding reach, elevating sustainability, and ensuring European textile machinery remains visible on the global stage.
CEMATEX’s involvement with ITMA ASIA is hardly new. The committee first launched the ITMA ASIA series back in 1999 and even brought it to Singapore in 2001 and 2005. In 2008, it merged with CITME in Shanghai, creating the joint event that has since become Asia’s premier textile machinery exhibition. But the 2025 edition marks a new chapter. For the first time, the show will have a second location outside China—returning to Singapore. The move, according to CEMATEX leaders, reflects a deliberate strategy to engage directly with fast-growing markets in South Asia, Southeast Asia, and the Middle East.
Industry response has confirmed the wisdom of that choice. Originally planned as a 60,000-square-metre showcase, the Singapore event has already expanded to 70,000 square metres after exhibitor applications surpassed expectations. More than 770 companies from 33 countries and regions have signed up, underscoring the demand for a platform that can connect technology providers with emerging production hubs. As Ernesto Maurer, then-president of CEMATEX, explained, “We are augmenting the series with a second location in Asia to better reach out to the textile hubs in these regions”.
CEMATEX’s influence extends beyond the exhibition halls. On 30 October 2025, the committee will host the ITMA Sustainability Forum: Accelerating the Green Transition. The forum is designed to help manufacturers navigate the increasingly complex demands of global sustainability regulations, particularly those emerging from Europe. Topics will include eco-design, digital product passports, and extended producer responsibility. By positioning sustainability at the heart of the program, CEMATEX is sending a clear message: technology and regulation must move together if the textile sector is to thrive in a low-carbon future.
The choice of Singapore as host city also reflects CEMATEX’s long-term thinking. With world-class infrastructure, easy international access, and strong links to surrounding textile hubs, Singapore offers both practicality and symbolism. It signals that the textile machinery industry is no longer defined solely by traditional strongholds but is actively engaging with new centers of manufacturing growth.
For CEMATEX, ITMA ASIA + CITME Singapore 2025 is more than a trade show. It is a platform to shape the future of textile machinery—through market expansion, through sustainability leadership, and through ensuring European innovation remains part of the global conversation.